deteriorating

[dih-teer-ee-uh-rey-ting]

adjective

1. becoming worse or inferior in condition, character, quality, value, etc..

   A deteriorating house, whatever the cause, will have an adverse effect on your real estate investment.

   Officials have warned of a deteriorating security situation in the disputed territory.

2. disintegrating or wearing away.

   If what you have underneath is fabric or fiberglass, I’d be concerned that deteriorating paint is letting ultraviolet rays do their worst to your aircraft.

Other Word Forms

• undeteriorating adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of deteriorating¹

First recorded in 1680–90; deteriorate ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

But she said her deteriorating condition was not identified, and was only able to see her son Reggie for 10 minutes before going into a coma.

From BBC

Mr Carrido told the inquest he called for consultant help "when there was no improvement in Tommy, when he was deteriorating".

From BBC

The family hopes Jess's Rule will help to increase awareness of the importance of GPs acting quickly for patients who are steadily deteriorating.

From BBC

Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said the latest figures, "highlight the deteriorating nature of the public finances even though the economy hasn't been terribly weak".

From BBC

Eritrea dismissed his comments as "reckless sabre-rattling", amid fears that relations between the two nations - who fought a border war that killed tens of thousand of people in the late 1990s - were once again deteriorating.

From BBC

Related Words

• crummy 
• decaying www.thesaurus.com
• decrepit 
• desolate 
• dilapidated 
• dingy 
• pitiful 
• ramshackle 
• ratty 
• rickety 
• run down 
• scruffy 
• seedy 
• shoddy 
• squalid 
• tacky 
• tattered 
• threadbare 
• worn